


Waiting for the Future

by WatchTheAntagonist



Series: Fjorester Week [2]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Pre-Relationship, hand holding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-12-30 09:54:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18313238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WatchTheAntagonist/pseuds/WatchTheAntagonist
Summary: They’ve been captured by slavers, but Jester is sure that isn’t a good enough reason to give up on hope. Now she just has to convince Fjord of that.





	Waiting for the Future

**Author's Note:**

> Written for day two of Fjorester week: Touch. Takes place during the first day of Fjord and Jester's time enslaved by the Iron Shepherds.

The Traveler was going to rescue them. Jester was sure of it. So, it was okay that her manacles were on too tight, pinching off the circulation from her hands. It was okay that it was so, so dark. It was okay that she hadn’t eaten anything since they had been locked in the wagon the night before. Those were just physical conditions; they would pass. It would probably be a pretty funny story later, actually. Jester imagined it that way. She didn’t have her sketchbook with her, not that she would have been able to draw very well with her hands cuffed behind her back anyways, but she was keeping herself entertained by imagining what she would draw to tell the Traveler all about it after they were rescued.

               The wagon was so bumpy that she would definitely draw huge boulders in its path that it had to roll over. And the grumblings of her empty stomach became comical as she imagined it scaring away birds and squirrels and hamster-sized unicorns. She’d draw the little unicorns trampling over Lorenzo, the loud one who shouted. Her friends and the traveler would burst through the illusion covering the wagon, which was a pretty cool spell, alerted by the fleeing unicorns.

               The one spellcaster who leered at her and kept commenting on how good a slave she would make after she’d been broken. . .she might just leave that one out of her drawings.

               Jester wished she wasn’t gagged. This would be much easier if she could just pray to the Traveler. She knew that he had to know where she was, he always did, but he might be a little bit quicker if she asked him to come. She would like him to come quickly.

               The cart jostled again, and the movement sent her sliding into Fjord. She leaned against him, taking momentary comfort from their closeness, but not like being too obvious about it or anything. All the romance novels she had read had exclaimed the virtues of playing hard to get.

               Jester snuck a glance at Fjord out of the corner of her eye. He was as handsome as ever, and she could already imagine the two of them riding off together into the sunset as soon as the Traveler got them out of the slavers’ grasp. Jester heard Fjord cough faintly, suppressed by his gag. She could feel his chest rattle with it. She gave him another glance through the corner of her eye, this time examining him a little more closely. His shoulders were hunched in, trying to make himself as small as possible, and he didn’t seem to even register her presence next to him. He didn’t make any effort to look at her, his eyes downcast and staring off into nothing. She had seen that look in the eyes of some of the other captured people here. The exhaustion was to be expected; neither of them had slept much the night before. But there was also hopelessness, and despair, and grief.

               It occurred to Jester that Fjord didn’t think that anyone was coming to rescue them.

               Jester didn’t like the idea of anyone knowing what the future is going to hold for them. She wasn’t thinking about Molly’s tarot cards, those were just little glimpses that were for fun and excitement. People thinking that they knew for sure meant that they didn’t leave any room for something unexpected, and the unexpected was how she worshiped. She was meant to be a seed of chaos and misadventure and laughter and fun, and she couldn’t do that if someone was so convinced that their future wasn’t going to contain any of that. Fjord thinking like that absolutely wouldn’t do. So, she would have to fix it. And if that determination had something to do with distracting herself from the nagging voice in the back of her head that sounded like the slavers and told her that she would be broken, well, she didn’t have to tell the Traveler about that part.

               Jester had a good singing voice. Not the spellbinding voice that her mama had—a voice that drove men, women, and everyone in between to throw themselves at her feet as they fell hopelessly in love—but it was cheerful, in tune, and made people smile. The gag was a bit of an obstacle. Her voice was definitely muffled, and the words were hard to make out, but she would make it work. She started with something she knew Fjord would recognize.

               “The Ruby of the Sea is the best lay eva,” she sang, trying to draw the words out and make the song even funnier than it already was. Trying not to miss her mama too much as she sang.

               “Shut up back there,” a voice growled from the driver of the cart. “Lorenzo wants to wait to start on you, but I’m sure he’ll make an exception for that racquet.”

               Jester quieted. She knew the Traveler would want for her to keep singing, and she probably would later, if there was a time where it was just Fjord and her and Yasha. But, for now, _you’ll make a good slave once you’ve been broken,_ she was going to bide her time. If the Traveler was here now, whispering in her ear and making her brave, she would keep singing. But, she could wait a little while. Just until he got here. She would be brave then.

               Until then, she still needed to find some way so that Fjord knows that they are going to be okay. Jester’s hands were shaking, but she wasn’t thinking about that, just about how Fjord had tensed up when the driver had yelled and hunched in even further.

               Jester scooted around so that she and Fjord were almost back to back. It took a bit of contorting, but she managed to twist so that, even with both of their hands cuffed behind their backs, Fjord’s hand was in hers. His hand was cold, and he flinched away from her when she first touched him. After a minute, he relaxed and curled his fingers loosely around hers. Jester had a colder body temperature than most Tieflings, something about where exactly her demon heritage came from probably, so Fjord’s hand didn’t warm up. Still, she didn’t think she imagined the easing of tension from the muscles in his hand.

               _It’s going to be okay. I don’t like being certain of the future, but I have to be this time. The Traveler will come for us. Because he’s a god, and that’s what gods should do. And because he’s my best friend, and that’s what best friends do._ _So, we don’t have to be scared._

               Jester tried to broadcast her thoughts to him. She tried to ignore everything else and just focus on the feeling of his hand in hers. There was a scar on his knuckle, and she ran her fingers over it, trying to come up with stories in her head for how he got it. She would ask him later, after they were safe. After a while, she started drawing on his palm with the tip of her long fingernail. Starting with a dick, of course. She felt a surge of victory when she heard a muffled chuckle from him once he realized what she was doing. Another long pause. She hoped the Traveler would come soon. She missed her mama. Time passed; she was starting to lose track of how much.

               She started another drawing on Fjord’s palm. She had to take a steadying breath so her hands didn’t shake as she traced out the shape of a simple heart. Fjord didn’t give any sign or response. Her heart beat faster. Had he not figured out what she drew? She withdrew her hand just a little when Fjord’s hand reached out and grabbed hers. He squeezed tightly. A promise. He wouldn’t give up. They would get out. And after. . .well, they’d figure that out when they got there. No need to be certain of too much of the future. Just believing that they’d get the chance was enough.

               Jester squeezed back, leaning into Fjord’s body as they settled in to wait for the future to arrive.


End file.
